Man Charged in Washington Mutual Bank Robbery

Man Charged In Bank Robberies. A Bellerose man shot and arrested in May by Nassau police, who said he used his car to try to run down a detective, was charged Friday with robbing two banks in February. Parvez Bal, 24, of 77-14B 249th St., was charged with the Feb. 2 robberies of Washington Mutual Bank in New Hyde Park and an Independence Community Bank in Manhasset. Bal was scheduled to be arraigned Saturday in First District Court in Hempstead on the new charges. He was already under arrest for attempted murder from a May 18 incident in Floral Park. At that time, detectives approached Bal in his car because both Bal and his car fit the description of a suspect and vehicle sought in several bank robberies, police said. Bal attempted to plow his car into one of the detectives, police said, and was wounded by police as he drove off. Bal was arrested a short time later in a nearby parking lot after a brief struggle.

What are people saying about mortgages today:

Rates on 30-year mortgages edged down last week to a seven-month low. Mortgage-giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell to 6.3 percent, down slightly from 6.31 percent two weeks ago. It put rates at the lowest level since they were at 6.24 percent the first week of March.

Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific Bank, Territorial Savings Bank and Wells Fargo Home Mortgages all cut their 30-year mortgage rates to 5.75 percent this week.

Most people think of a mortgage as a means to an end. After all, you buy a house, not a home loan. But a mortgage is much more than the path to homeownership. It is a financial instrument that must be managed, just like any other financial investment.